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Are you pregnant again after having preeclampsia once already in a previous pregnancy? Post your thoughts/concerns here - there are others who share your feelings. This is also the home of our Bedrest Buddies Support group.

Oh and as for the hepatitis B vaccine--I understand your concerns there but 20-30% of the people who do have Hepatitis B (which if I remember correctly is somewhere just over a million people in the US alone), contracted it as a child--and those who didn't contract it at birth contracted it while in close contact with someone who was already infected. Not trying to tell you what to do at all-just wanted to pass that a long!

I'm only a few weeks away from delivery so I probably won't end up getting one until after baby is born--then after that who knows. The only reason I'm delaying is because I'm exhausted lol and am really not going out beyond necessary trips. I am just so darn tired.

I understand that these vaccines do come out yearly and are not necessarily tested on pregnant women--however the benefits of the vaccine out weigh the risks. The TRUE flu (not just the puking, stomach ache "flu", but the real you've been swabbed for it and you have influenza whatever) can actually be quite risky. Although it doesn't seem from what I've read to necessarily be worse for pregnant women--very young and very old (esp. very elderly) have a higher morbidity rate. BUT it's all up to you and what you feel comfortable with.

I decided not to last year for several reasons (much to my mfm's annoyance but my ob never said a peep about it). One, they change it every year and never test it in pregnant women, which made me very uncomfortable. Two, I read a Cochrane Review article questioning the safety and effectiveness of the flu shot (I can't find the same one that was from last year, but here's a link to an older one with similar information http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/releases/55507.php ). Three, I wasn't working( (but also did not get it/was not going to get it in my first pregnancy when I was teaching middle schoolers, and that was with the H1N1 hysteria in full swing). And I was not due near flu season- April/May (but also was not going to get it when I was due in January.) If you do get it, make sure you get the thimersol free version. Definitely don't get it in the first trimester. But besides that, if you are going to get it, you can pretty much get it whenever.

As for the Dtap/Tdap (whooping cough), they usually like you to get it before pregnancy, but if you haven't had it in the last 2 years, they will usually give it to you in the hospital. I made DH get it before the baby was born and also made my parents get it. (Well, I didn't really "make" them get it, but I told them if they didn't, they weren't going to be holding my newborn.)

I'm not really a big vax fan, we are vaxing Lucas on a delayed schedule (only 2 shots at a time per visit/month instead of the 6 or so they are supposed to get, and some vax that are not necessary for newborns, like the Hep.B they give them at birth, we are delaying indefinitely as I am certain that I do not have Hep.B -they test you in your prenatal bloodwork- and I'm certain my newborn/infant is not sharing needles or getting a tattoo or at risk to contract Hep.B. They give it at birth to "catch" the babies from mom's with Hep.B that do not know it, but for many babies, the Hep.B is not necessary until much later.)

There are two shots I feel as though I should get, the flu shot and the whooping cough vaccine. I don't know when would be a good time for either of those. I have no advice though... Hopefully someone else will chime in.

Are you getting a flu shot, and if so, when?I'm leaning toward yes, because I don't want to get the flu and confuse it with HELLP symptoms. I'm just not sure how late to get it..I don't want the benefit of it to run out before the flu season is over. (And yet I don't want to wait too long because who knows when I'll end up delivering!)

Our first son was born and passed in Feb of 2010. Born at 29 weeks due to HELLP and passed due to NEC. We miss him every day. :~(

Our second son was born at 39 weeks gestation in Nov of 2011. No HELLP or pre-e! Took LDA starting at week 12 and went off of it at week 38!